Potency Difference between Quick-Dried & Long-Cured Buds

I stand by what I said, there is no real increase in potency.
I say this simply because of experience (blind-tests with my friends), but of course - I MIGHT suck at curing - so I could be wrong.

You DO get high more easily though;

It tastes better, easier to smoke more and therefore you get higher easier.

It's smaller (drier, so less weight), so more thricomes pr. gram, so you need to smoke less (=feels like more potent bud).



Of course, there is SOME change in potency, but it might as well get WORSE. Cannabinoids are complex - some are psychoactive and some are not - some are even antagonistic towards each other (!!), so how they change during curing need real scientific studies (not only how they change, but their interactions).

If you wanna try the product before it's dry you must grind it and leave it sit for a few hours and the moisture will be gone, this smoke will give you an idea of what's to come. It is not comparable to a properly dried and cured nugget, just about any grower knows this

Kush Push said:

If you wanna try the product before it's dry you must grind it and leave it sit for a few hours and the moisture will be gone, this smoke will give you an idea of what's to come. It is not comparable to a properly dried and cured nugget, just about any grower knows this

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read the original post please

very useful info i came upon searching:
http://www.hempreport.com/issues/17/malbody17.html

from the link above:

"We also examined cannabinoid content of stalked gland by age to measure the major cannabinoid components in both a fiber and drug strain (Table 2). Glands, viewed under a microscope, can be classified according to their secretory phases from the color of their contents. Glands most active in secretion (mature) are translucent in appearance, aged glands are yellow in appearance and senescent glands are brown in color. Mature glands possessed the highest content of their major cannabinoid in both the fiber and drug strains. Senescent glands possessed low levels of cannabinoids. The concentration of some components, as CBD in the drug strains, may be so low that is was not detectable in our analysis; similarly, for THC and CBN in the fiber strain. It is unknown where the cannabinoids go during the aging process, but we suggest that it is possible they volatilize into the atmosphere along with the terpenes in glands, as noted later in this report."

He is asking the difference in potency of a quick dry compared to a normal dry no? The effects differ as I stated.

Kush Push said:

He is asking the difference in potency of a quick dry compared to a normal dry no? The effects differ as I stated.

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thanks for the reply mate, but first of all, I am "he"! i mentioned the original post because i did exactly what you suggested.
AND i got your statement, but statements are not exactly what i'm looking for here, i've read tons of different statements on this matter already! what i'm looking for are REASONS, EXPLANATIONS and REFERENCES my friend, but thanks for your opinion

Google it bro..
"keeping the plant moist enough to stay alive and still maintain gass transfer..through this natural process of hydrolysis and respiration the components are broken down and becomes smooth..this process is known as the cure
Reduction in Chlorophyll content, doesn't taste like smoking veggies
Reduction in plant starch content,and sugars, creating asmooth smoke that will just expand nicely in your lungs, won't even feel it go down
Reduction in nitrate levels,less carcinogenic, always good right
polycyclic aromatization of terpenoids altering the flavor profile more robust, less perfumey even soapy and stronger , having a lower ppm sensory threshold.
Reduction of and consistent moisture content, even slow burn and no smoldering or black ash unwilling to burn"

References? That's my quote..

As to potency. It decreases upon chop. Any form of decarbing beforehand is simply unnecessary degradation as it happens upon vaporizing. Technically it will get stronger till all the moisture has left and it stops concentrating itself

If it goes in the jar at 16%thc it comes out 16% THC.. If you think taking the plant out off the dirt and placing it in a jar makes it STRONGER why not just leave it in there till it 100% thc..lol. Its a flavor enhancing method used that's all. Iv tried Two and a half year cured nugs and it was some of the tastiest stuff I almost forgot to exhale. SCARELET

http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/00450610903258144
There have been many studies of thc degradation over time......
Besides that thca is a larger molecule. Once the carboxyl group is cleaved its roughly 90% of its original size

Definitely not as simple as 16 in and 16 out .. after 2 and a half years its lost over half its potency

If so it was still really potent , I think its got a lot to do with the cure process. Its also been proven that cured bud does gradually lose thc content but not very fast and it would have to be exposed to oxygen for some period of time so if you think a properly long term cure is taking from the value of bud I feel a little sorry for you. Its truly amazing smoke and kinda a mile stone in marijuana cultivation to see how long and well one can cure there product. I herd of a 5 year cure TGA pulled some out in a video, dude IT WAS a yellow ice nug.

ITS similar to wine. YouTube it.

scarelet said:

If it goes in the jar at 16%thc it comes out 16% THC.. If you think taking the plant out off the dirt and placing it in a jar makes it STRONGER why not just leave it in there till it 100% thc..lol. Its a flavor enhancing method used that's all. Iv tried Two and a half year cured nugs and it was some of the tastiest stuff I almost forgot to exhale. SCARELET

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As far as i know wet samples test higher in thc then fully dried ones. Don't think that makes it better or even more potent IMO since i have some other supposed lower thc strains that due to terps or cannabanoids<<??? but the higher thc isn't more "potent" at least to me,,

ok back on track so if lab tests are higher wet it would seem to me fresh bud were be more potent if thc levels are gonna be the standard for measuring potency.

If I thought curing lost value I wouldn't have described its effects.
4 months is optimum. Thca will not decarb forever and terps don't cyclizize forever either. Curing longer won't improve
Also oxygen oxidizes..obviously..but its not the main factor in your degraded bud.. or even cbn creation. Light and heat are the bane of our herb

Im not sure how to respond to such Ignorance. I not even going to respond to your HIT at me and my bud but you might want to stop using big words and see for your self. Like I stated There's year old cured bud out there and its great. I would say maybe you never had enough weight to try you just go by what they way. Freedom fighters.

for god's sake guys! why do you always have to mix everything up?! couldn't we just stay on one track and try to talk a lil professional about JUST ONE PARTICULAR SUBJECT?!

I mean i've stated loud and clear straight up from the title to here that THE ONLY MATTER I AM TRYING TO DISCUSS IN THIS TOPIC IS THE DIFFERENCE IN POTENCY AND NOT THE TASTE AND SMELL!

you don't have to tell me about Chlorophyll breakdown and aromatic cyclic Terpenoids and why curing makes a better taste and smell out of your weed, i know my chemistry! thanks for your time mate, but i'd rather listen to your knowledge and what you got to say about the subject i wanna know about, not something i already know...

and i thought i've always heard from us potheads that its alcohol that makes people aggressive and is the herb of PEACE, that makes people more friendly to each other, and its called a Joint, because it makes people JOIN each other and be WITH EACH OTHER&#8230;

Test it out yourself and see. I notice a difference but really not much. I don't think it's ever been scientifically broken down

Dyna Ryda said:

First I have to say light does not effect thc or how potent cannabis is. That is entirely strain depended.... I couldn't imagine it being any stronger if I dried it in the dark.

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The science contradicts this a bit. This the abstract from a paper called The Stability Of Cannabis and its Preparations on Storage
"Solutions of pure cannabinoids, nine samples of herbal and two of resin cannabis (one freshly prepared) were stored in varying conditions for up to 2 years. Exposure to light (not direct sunlight) was shown to be the greatest single factor in loss of cannabinoids especially in solutions, which should therefore be protected from light during analytical and phytochemical operations. Previous claims that solutions in ethanol were stable have not been substantiated. The effect of temperature, up to 20°, was insignificant but air oxidation did lead to significant losses. These could be reduced if care was taken to minimize damage to the glands which act as “well filled, well closed containers”. Loss of tetrahydrocannabinol after exposure to light does not lead to an increase in cannabinol, but air oxidation in the dark does. It is concluded that carefully prepared herbal or resin cannabis or extracts are reasonably stable for 1 to 2 years if stored in the dark at room temperature."

I also made bold some other areas of the abstract that are pertinent to this thread. I believe the OP is correct in his appraisal that Taste is what improves with curing, and not potency. The argument that curing causes THC-A to convert to THC, thus increasing potency, is fundamentally flawed due to the fact that the decarboxylation of THC-A into THC happens under application of heat. This means that when you heat the cannabis to ingest it (via lighter or vaporizer if inhaling, or convection/conduction if baking into food) the THC-A will decarb as the heat source is applied, meaning that you will inhale/ingest THC and not THC-A regardless of which form was in the material. The only time the distinction is important is in the making of tinctures, when there is no heat applied during extraction.

qwizoking said:

If I thought curing lost value I wouldn't have described its effects.
4 months is optimum. Thca will not decarb forever and terps don't cyclizize forever either. Curing longer won't improve
Also oxygen oxidizes..obviously..but its not the main factor in your degraded bud.. or even cbn creation. Light and heat are the bane of our herb

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Read what I just posted, as it offers support that oxygen is not the main factor in degradation but it IS the main factor in cbn creation.